Everything Stems from Training
I worked on a client project recently and we were focused on the onboarding and training components for her team. Before being brought in, she was experiencing high turnover, client dissatisfaction, team animosity, operational inefficiency and STRESS. The workplace culture was not healthy and there were a lot of challenges at hand.
I see this type of situation play out often. The business grows, the owner needs more help, they throw bodies at the problem and hope they can just figure it out as they go. That usually never works. Or at least, never works well. Despite what some may think, hiring and training is actually a very hands-on, time-intensive process. Why? Because the type of training a team member receives will have a direct impact on how they proceed to move through and grow within the business.
If you take a look at your daily operations, you will see a direct line from how everyone operates to how they were trained. Everything stems from training. What's deemed important. The hierarchy of needs. When to escalate issues and to whom. Which platforms to use for what. Communication parameters and frequency. Workplace culture. Management and oversight. All of it comes back to training. Because training tells new team members how the business operates. How things work. And what the expectations are.
If a training plan isn't in place, these things are missed. And it can be devastating to the business. So my encouragement is to take a look at your current training plan. Is it thorough? Is it well structured and easy to follow? Do you know who's responsible for which parts? Do you have a timeline built? What do the first 30 days look like? And is it consistent and easily repeatable?
I worked with the client above for four months. By the time we were finished, she had hired two new employees with our plan in place. She told me there was a stark contrast between those hired before our plan, and those hired after our plan. Her team noticed too, and the workplace culture started to shift. Her relief at our final session was palpable.
